I pit stupid partisan schoolteachers

[rjung]

First, the setup...

Middle School Teacher In Trouble Over Presidential Photo?

...This is Crossroads South Middle School in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey. On Thursday, there was a back-to-school night for parents of students. Veteran English teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz says she was shocked when three parents confronted her. The three, insisting the teacher either add John Kerry's photo to the montage of presidents or remove the Bush photo. When Pillai-Diaz refused, she says the school's vice-principal threatened her job which is an act that has parents here fuming.

Pillai-Diaz ultimately removed the entire bulletin board and says School Principal Jim Warfel told her she disrupted the school with her "inflammatory politics". She says he then ordered her out of the building. While she says she is a Bush supporter in her personal life, Pillai-Diaz says she keeps politics out of the classroom.

But don't cry for Ms. Pillai-Diaz just yet! As it turns out, she's a bald-faced lying <expletive of your choice>...

Announcements from the South Brunswick Board of Education

In an incident that has recently been reported to several media sources, a claim has been made by South Brunswick Middle School teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz, that she was fired for not removing a picture of President George W. Bush from a classroom bulletin board. The claim is false. While I am normally reluctant to discuss personnel matters in public, Ms. Pillai-Diaz’ distortions of the facts, along with her aggressive efforts to get herself national media attention, leaves the district no choice but to set the record straight.

The facts are as follows:

Ms. Pillai-Diaz is a new Language Arts teacher in the South Brunswick Schools. Recently, the school administration began receiving complaints from students and parents that Ms. Pillai-Diaz was using her position, classroom and teaching time to engage in partisan politics. Students reported that she had made statements which denigrated one party over the other. The conversations included Ms. Pillai-Diaz telling some students who offered opinions contrary to her statements, that she was “glad they were not old enough to vote.” Other comments to students, including such statements as, “you should be ashamed to be a Democrat” have been verified through student interviews.

A classroom bulletin board, normally intended for curriculum-related matters, was set up as what she herself described as a “personal bulletin board.” On the bulletin board she placed a picture of the President, the President's dog, the Oval Office and several other Presidential artifacts. In addition, she placed a stuffed elephant on a classroom cabinet, which generated student reaction and discussion about partisan politics.

I don't care what side of the aisle you want to sit on -- telling students in a public school that you're "glad they're not old enough to vote," or that they "should be ashamed to be a _____" deserves nothing but derisive jeers.

Shiba Pillai-Diaz -- :wally of the Week

[Mockingbird]

Meanwhile that partisan piece of shit Colin Quinn leads his show with this story without the aspect of truth, painting this dishonest bitch as a victim of repressive democrats.

[Roland Orzabal]

I had a teacher that was like this, but he thought he was subtle. He would say "I won't tell you my opinion on this, but...", followed by his opinion on the subject. The most prominent example of this that sticks in my mind:

"I won't tell you my opinion on abortion, but I'll just say this: there wouldn't be such a controversy over it if there weren't something inherently evil about it."

I didn't know whether to laugh or just bang my head into my desk, so I did a little of both. He gave me a puzzled look, and I honestly don't think he understood why I reacted that way. I guess after twenty years of spouting inconsistant middle-of-the-road "ideology" at students, it had become so ingrained that he no longer realized he was doing it. Since ours was an honors government class, the students were too smart to be affected by this to any great extent, so it was merely amusing. Nonetheless, it's still wrong.

[Hades]

What the fuck is wrong with the first quote? George W. Bush is the president of the United States and John Kerry is only a senator. For anyone to insist that Kerry be put on the bulletin board is obviously as much a partisan hack as Pillai-Diaz is said to be in the second quote.

That you would pit someone for being overly partisan is ludicrous in the extreme and I say that as someone who actually shares your political beliefs. While people accuse Reeder of being our December, it's my opinion that you are instead. I think I've seen maybe a dozen posts by you that aren't some thinly veiled jab at Bush, Republicans, or conservatives in general if it's even disguised at all.

[iampunha]

I hope the lying, abrasive nature of this individual doesn't leave any of her students (or those who interact with her) with a falsely negative opinion of democrats.

[Spree]

Originally Posted by Aesiron

What the fuck is wrong with the first quote? George W. Bush is the president of the United States and John Kerry is only a senator. For anyone to insist that Kerry be put on the bulletin board is obviously as much a partisan hack as Pillai-Diaz is said to be in the second quote.

That you would pit someone for being overly partisan is ludicrous in the extreme and I say that as someone who actually shares your political beliefs. While people accuse Reeder of being our December, it's my opinion that you are instead. I think I've seen maybe a dozen posts by you that aren't some thinly veiled jab at Bush, Republicans, or conservatives in general if it's even disguised at all.

Ummm, I think that the point of the first quote is that the bulletin board nonsense was made up by the teacher, who was trying to get media attention and painted the story so that she looked sympathetic.

And while I accept that partisanship is going to happen and I need to deal with it (heck, I'm just as partisan as the next person), I absolutely, positively REFUSE to accept or condone partisanship in our schools. It does NOT belong here. Rjung was right to pit this scumbag of a teacher.

[Hades]

Originally Posted by Aesiron

What the fuck is wrong with the first quote? George W. Bush is the president of the United States and John Kerry is only a senator. For anyone to insist that Kerry be put on the bulletin board is obviously as much a partisan hack as Pillai-Diaz is said to be in the second quote.

That you would pit someone for being overly partisan is ludicrous in the extreme and I say that as someone who actually shares your political beliefs. While people accuse Reeder of being our December, it's my opinion that you are instead. I think I've seen maybe a dozen posts by you that aren't some thinly veiled jab at Bush, Republicans, or conservatives in general if it's even disguised at all.

I kind of got sidetracked there.

While I find the hypocrisy of the OP to be overpowering, the idiocy of the teacher is even moreso as evidenced by the second quote. I'm glad someone so ignorant is no longer in the classroom.

[Atticus Finch]

Originally Posted by Aesiron

What the fuck is wrong with the first quote? George W. Bush is the president of the United States and John Kerry is only a senator. For anyone to insist that Kerry be put on the bulletin board is obviously as much a partisan hack as Pillai-Diaz is said to be in the second quote.

That's the point, there's nothing wrong with Pillai-Diaz's behaviour in the first quote. If she had been sacked for the situation described in the first quote, it would be ridiculous, as you suggest.

But that was not the real situation - the real situation was the second one. The first was Pillai-Diaz's version of events, and she was lying. Many people thought as you did, and were on Pillai-Diaz's side. There was a Pit thread on it yesterday with only Pillai-Diaz's version.

[Sublight]

Originally Posted by Aesiron

What the fuck is wrong with the first quote? George W. Bush is the president of the United States and John Kerry is only a senator. For anyone to insist that Kerry be put on the bulletin board is obviously as much a partisan hack as Pillai-Diaz is said to be in the second quote.

What was wrong with the first quote is that, according to school board, it was a lie.

What's interesting, IMO, is this.

At no time was she told to leave, asked to leave or given authorization to leave. School was still in session. At no time was she told she was suspended or fired. With professional responsibilities of a classroom teacher waiting, Ms. Pillai-Diaz chose, of her own volition, to walk out of the school, contact various media sources and claim she had been fired.

[Sublight]

Ok, that was a simulpost there.

[Brutus]

The three, insisting the teacher either add John Kerry's photo to the montage of presidents...

Good God, Kerryites are stupid.

[Sublight]

You didn't even bother to read past the first paragraph, did you?

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by Sublight

You didn't even bother to read past the first paragraph, did you?

Please point out the specific line that refutes what I quoted.

[Spree]

Originally Posted by Brutus

Good God, Kerryites are stupid.

Ya know, the OP wasn't really THAT difficult to parse.

[Hades]

Okay, I suppose I should have actually clicked on the links and not just believed the quotes as given. For that I apologize. Thank you, Atticus and Sublight.

And now Brutus is showing it's not just restricted to hypersensitive liberals.

I hate election years.

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by Spree

Ya know, the OP wasn't really THAT difficult to parse.

I was being serious, you know. Please point out the specific line that refutes what I quoted. I can and will eat crow when proven wrong, as infrequent as that is.

[Sublight]

The claim is false.

Howzat?

[Spree]

Originally Posted by Brutus

I was being serious, you know. Please point out the specific line that refutes what I quoted. I can and will eat crow when proven wrong, as infrequent as that is.

From the first quote:

The three, insisting the teacher either add John Kerry's photo to the montage of presidents or remove the Bush photo.

From the second quote:

On the bulletin board she placed a picture of the President, the President's dog, the Oval Office and several other Presidential artifacts. In addition, she placed a stuffed elephant on a classroom cabinet, which generated student reaction and discussion about partisan politics.

There was no "montage of presidents" - it was a tribute to Bush.

More info:

Interviewed yesterday, McCartney said if Pillai-Diaz stopped making political statements he would allow her to return to the classroom and even return the picture to the bulletin board, telling her, "I encourage you to do so."

According to McCartney, pictures of the president are "openly displayed" in all district schools.

A teacher at the Monmouth Junction School has displayed a portrait of President Bush for four years, without incident, said McCartney.

McCartney said it was Pillai-Diaz who removed the picture and pictures of the president's dog, the Oval Office and the Declaration of Independence. She said she also had a picture of Air Force One, and a poster with a signature of all the presidents.

Pillai-Diaz' display, accompanied by her rhetoric, he said, "took it out of the realm of education and made the presentation appear partisan to many of our students and parents."

Earlier in the school year she had on top of her cabinet a stuffed elephant, symbol of the Republican Party, for which Pillai-Diaz served as a volunteer at its national convention in New York.

There is no evidence, none at all, that any parents demanded that Kerry be added to a photo montage of the presidents.

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by Sublight

Howzat?

Doesn't address what I quoted. According to the South Brunswick Board of Education, 'The claim is false 'applies to: (if you believe their statement, that is)

In an incident that has recently been reported to several media sources, a claim has been made by South Brunswick Middle School teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz, that she was fired for not removing a picture of President George W. Bush from a classroom bulletin board.

They don't address the three parents who believe that Kerry is a President.

Veteran English teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz says she was shocked when three parents confronted her. The three, insisting the teacher either add John Kerry's photo to the montage of presidents or remove the Bush photo.

Ergo, stupid.

As to the whole 'fired' thing, the last paragraph in the first link addresses that nicely:

School officials would not talk on camera but insist nobody here has been fired. To that, Ms. Pillai-Diaz asks what does it mean then when your boss asks you to hand over the keys and kicks you out of the building?

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by Spree

There was no "montage of presidents" - it was a tribute to Bush.

The second quote certainly doesn't claim that there were no other presidential photos up there.

There is no evidence, none at all, that any parents demanded that Kerry be added to a photo montage of the presidents.

Ms. Pillai-Diaz claims there were, and judging from the outrageous actions of Kerry supporters here and elsewhere, I am inclined to believe her.

[Spree]

Originally Posted by Brutus

Ms. Pillai-Diaz claims there were, and judging from the outrageous actions of Kerry supporters here and elsewhere, I am inclined to believe her.

That doesn't suprise me.

<Shrug>. I'm inclined not to believe her. I hold people who make completely unsubstantiated claims to a higher standard than you apparently do, what can I say?

[Brutus]

Originally Posted by Spree

...what can I say?

How about, "Yep, nothing in either linked story refutes what you quoted."?

[tomndebb]

How about, "Yep, nothing in either linked story refutes what you quoted."?

Well, the fact that the teacher appears to be lying, so the claim on which you based your observation appears to be groundless, means that while it is not "refuted" it is, as most of the partisan bullshit flung around these halls, just wrong.

As noted in other reports of the incident, there was no "montage of presidents." The bulleting board had one portrait of Washington, one portrait of Franklin (maybe the teacher thought Franklin was a president?) and multiple photos of Bush, family, and dog. That is not a montage of presidents. The parents stated that if Bush was going to be championed on a school board in an election year, the challenger should be given space, as well. Only the teacher has pretended that anyone asked that Kerry be added to a group of presidents.
Now, it is true that the stories linked in the OP do not carry all that detail (since the teacher mendaciously spun the first story and the school administration did not offer a point-by-point rebuttal in the second), but it is clear that partisans who believe liars without seeking better informnation are just mindless dittoheads, regardless of affiliation.

[tomndebb]

As noted in the thread, yesterday, blogger Pete Holiday has done a decent job of compiling most of the early news stories on the topic. (Scroll to October 4 and click open the "Expand this entry >>" link in the Teacher Scandal Summary of Facts section. (I will note that the letter by the purported student, "Ryan Bryce," demonstrates that there is, indeed, skulduggery going on in the Democrat camp, as well.)

Charges that either side is engaging in "typical" behavior is only true to the extent that individuals in both camps have resorted to dumb spin jobs.

The truly dumb comments are those painted by people wielding wide tar brushes (and generally splattering themselves with their product).

[Metacom]

Originally Posted by Brutus

Good God, Kerryites are stupid.

Sweet Jesus, Bushies are a bunch of evil, idiotic assholes.

Please find a specific line that refutes the above statement.

[Finagle]

I dunno -- I think rjung could stifle his righteous indignation until all the facts come out. Right now, it's very much a he said-she said situation as demonstrated by tomndebb's cite. Calling the teacher a "she's a bald-faced lying <expletive of your choice>" based on a statement released by the opposing side is an act of less than Solomonic wisdim.


However I'm certain that Brutus should just stifle every impulse he has to post, ever.

[little*bit]

Disregarding the OP except for the title...

My sister is a teacher & my brother-in-law is a vice-principal. Teachers are not allowed to display partisanship (is that a word?) in school or at school functions. It is also discouraged from said behavior where a student might reasonably expected. Teachers are also not supposed to teach opinion. You teach both sides of the facts of an argument and leave the conclusions to be drawn by the students.

I asked by sister & her husband about this teacher & what would have happened in their districts. Both said if it was a montage of presidents & no partisan comments were made to students, nothing would have happened. If it was just a picture of Bush & no partisan comments were made to students, nothing would have happened. If partisan comments were made to students & none of the picture stuff had even happened, she would have been reprimanded. And if she ignored the reprimand & continued to comment biasedly about political issues she would either be fired or suspended if she had tenure (which she apparantly doesn't).

[SteveG1]

Putting Bush's picture up is not a big deal. Plenty of schools and offices put up the picture of whoever the "reigning" president is. However, pushing personal politics on students, and insulting those students who lean toward "the other party" is uncalled for. In a perfect world, schools would teach how to think, not what to think. Maybe growing up in NYC was a good thing. We had all the different poltical leanings in our neighborhood. Repubs, Dems, borderline fascists, borderline Communists, so I learned to take it all with a grain of salt. I also was able to learn who was apparently full of shit on what subjects. Funny, but it was the "borderline Commies" who taught me to think for myself instead of following any one party line.

[Elza B]

Originally Posted by Roland Orzabal

I had a teacher that was like this, but he thought he was subtle. He would say "I won't tell you my opinion on this, but...", followed by his opinion on the subject. The most prominent example of this that sticks in my mind:

"I won't tell you my opinion on abortion, but I'll just say this: there wouldn't be such a controversy over it if there weren't something inherently evil about it."

I didn't know whether to laugh or just bang my head into my desk, so I did a little of both. He gave me a puzzled look, and I honestly don't think he understood why I reacted that way. I guess after twenty years of spouting inconsistant middle-of-the-road "ideology" at students, it had become so ingrained that he no longer realized he was doing it. Since ours was an honors government class, the students were too smart to be affected by this to any great extent, so it was merely amusing. Nonetheless, it's still wrong.

Errr....did you go to school in Chesterfield, VA? Because I had an honors government teacher who pulled this exact same shit. Along with endless rants on shrink-swell soil.

Ava

[neuroman]

Brutus, you're being obtuse and making yourself look like an ass. Just because you dislike an OP doesn't mean he's wrong. I'm no fan of rjung myself, but I don't see much reason to criticise him in this case or call his OP "hypocrisy." Any posts you'd care to reference to back up this claim?

[jayjay]

Originally Posted by neuroman

Brutus, you're being obtuse and making yourself look like an ass.

You're late to that party...

[lurkernomore]

Originally Posted by neuroman I'm no fan of [b

rjung[/b] myself, but I don't see much reason to criticise him in this case or call his OP "hypocrisy." Any posts you'd care to reference to back up this claim?

Actually, criticism could be leveled that this is largely a he-said,she-said situation, and he has taken a stand the board is right, the teacher wrong. There is a lot of slime being tossed around by both sides there, but can we really be sure it is the teacher who is wrong, and the school board telling the truth? We see some weird things come up in education - like a Menorah is considered secular enough to display in a NYC classroom, but a Nativity scene is strictly religious (a Christmas TREE is allowed).

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by lurkernomore

Actually, criticism could be leveled that this is largely a he-said,she-said situation, and he has taken a stand the board is right, the teacher wrong. There is a lot of slime being tossed around by both sides there, but can we really be sure it is the teacher who is wrong, and the school board telling the truth?

According to New Brunswick Home News Tribune, Pillai-Diaz says even the union is supporting the board. Meanwhile, a union rep says nobody was fired. Sounds to me like the teacher is stirring shit.

BTW: it seems the only "montage" in this story is a poster with all the Presidents' signatures.

[rjung]

Originally Posted by Finagle

I think rjung could stifle his righteous indignation until all the facts come out.

At the moment, I'm inclined to believe the Board of Education's view of events, because (a) they have nothing to gain from the matter as stated, and (b) they apparently have student witnesses confirming the charges. Ms. Pillai-Diaz has merely given us her say-so, in an apparent attempt to launch herself into the national spotlight as a po' defenseless conservative lost in a sea of liberals.

If more facts come in, I reserve the right to change my mind (unlike, say, a certain President of the United States). But for the moment, my spider-sense tells me that Ms. Pillai-Diaz is no innocent damsel in distress.

[malkavia]

Originally Posted by Brutus

The second quote certainly doesn't claim that there were no other presidential photos up there.



Ms. Pillai-Diaz claims there were, and judging from the outrageous actions of Kerry supporters here and elsewhere, I am inclined to believe her.

Every so often I encounter a Republican who makes me proud to be a registered Democrat.

<3 <3

Thank you, Brutus.

[dropzone]

Originally Posted by jayjay

You're late to that party...

By about two years and four months.

[Brutus]

So some of you will take the word of the principal over the teacher. Eh. Certainly not suprising.

[Bear_Nenno]

Most students in middle school are not mature or intelligent enough to have their own informed political views. Their views will be that of their parents. Unfortunately, if the parents are uneducated, uninformed, ignorant trash, then the children will have some crazy - and usually extremist - views.
The best way to avoid confrontation with these particular students, is to make sure they don't know your political affiliation or you stance on certain topics. While Ms. Pillai-Diaz didn't help the situation by placing an elephant on the cabinet and pictures of her hero on the bulletin board, there was no possible way for her to hide her political affiliation.
Ms. Pillai-Diaz took time away from school to attend the Republican National Convention. All her students would have known where she was. Think back to when you had a sub, you always knew where your teacher was.
Based on what I've read, and my own experiences with middle schools students, I am inclined to think the following are facts.

-Ms. Pillai-Diaz is an opinionated Republican
-Her students never liked her to begin with.
-Her students know she likes Bush. They know she was at the Convention.
-They ask her all the time about Bush. Why are you voting for him. My mom says she's a murderer. He uses the Army to kill babies. He's trying to make all black people slaves. . . yada y pues yada.
-She does her best to tell the students to stay off the subject.
-She even removes the elephant to try to prevent further uprising. Probably after a student commented on it and got loud and obnoxious.
-When the parents hear she won't let their students talk about politics in class, that she is violating and suppressing their freedom of speech. This makes them even madder than the few times she let slip some politically biased statements.
-She does her best to not stir up political debate in class, but when one can only take so much. At one point a student says something like "If I could vote, I would vote for Kerry because he isn't trying to be Hitler". She tries to brush it off, but she mumbles, "Well, I'm glad you're not able to vote". The student hears that and makes a huge deal out of it. The student tells his parents who make an even bigger deal about it.
-Weeks go by. She is still being pestered by some students. Eventually, a similar comment is made. Again, it is blown into something huge and complaints are made.
-The parents are really starting to hate her.
-The parents (probably know each other), approach her at a parent's night event and start yelling at her. Yelling, not discussing. They get in her face and demand that she put a Kerry poster on the bulletin board. She declines, so they tell the principal.
-The Principal doesn't really know Ms. Diaz. She's a new teacher. All he knows is he's been getting some complaints from these three parents. He calls her in and an argument insues. In the heat of it all, he tells her to grab her stuff and leave.
-Realizing that he doesn't have the authority to fire a teacher, the principal gets a union guy involved. He doesn't want to get in trouble for telling her to grab her stuff and leave. He needs to cover his ass and make sure the union knows he never tried to "fire" anyone. He's very lucky, and very happy that he never used the word "fired", so he makes sure to mention that. And he mentions it several times in front of the officer and the union guy to make it extra clear that he never used that specific term. That was a close one. He almost got in trouble for trying to fire a teacher.

So that's basically my view until I hear different. The students' "collaborated" testimony is irrelevant to me. The statements of the parents, the principal and the teacher are all relevant, but not one of them is entirely true. Everyone, including the teacher are lying about parts to make his/her side look better. She could have done a much better job of preventing this from escalating. Plus her obvious desire for publicity doesn't help anything.
The parents should have told their children to ignore and blow off the teacher's political views. Instead of saying, "It doesn't matter if she likes Bush. She doesn't have to have the righ answers to politics, she just needs to know Language Arts." They didn't have this attitude. They HATE Bush. When their children say that their teacher was at the Republican National Convention, they comment. They say, "She's an idiot. How can she like George Bush, he's a <insert lame and uninformed view here>." So the students, now fueled with the negativity and insult and disrespect of their parents, show NO respect to their teacher. And they make it clear to the teacher, that they (their parents actually) don't like Bush.

Somewhere within all the stories, the obvious attempts at national recognition, the fear of getting in trouble or looking bad, the bad kids and the irresponsible parents... lies the truth to this whole situation.
This is how I piece it together. Because of a lack of real witnesses, I don't think we will ever know the actual and complete truth.

[Bear_Nenno]

BTW, I wrote this principal a pretty mean letter. I have since apologized for the content but not the context. I believe he DID fire her. He told her to turn in her stuff and leave because he was so fed up with her. I think if he had not done this, the entire situation could have been kept under raps. He could have reprimanded the teacher accordingly. I think he over-stepped his authority in trying to remove a teacher. Later he tried to cover his but with the union with that spin. But I think this whole national media things started with his actions in the office. They started there. Obviously they were fueled by the teachers political agenda, but that's where it started. The principal should have mediated this situation. He should have scheduled a meeting with the teacher and the parents. And then one with the teachers, the parents AND the students. He could have prevented this from escalating when he first received complaints. Then, he could have prevented this from complete EXPLODING in front of him, when the parents went to him that final time.
At any point he could have scheduled a mediation. His lack of effective leadership is a primary reason for the problem rising to this level.

[tomndebb]

So that's basically my view until I hear different.

Are all your views of various stories based wholly on your own conjectures, unilluminated by facts? It is quite possible that the teacher has more to her side of the story than we have seen, but you are ascribing events, thoughts, and feelings to whole groups of people based on nothing more than your desire to create a scenario that would make you happy. (You don't happen to work for the DoD's Office of Special Plans, do you? )

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by Brutus

So some of you will take the word of the principal over the teacher. Eh. Certainly not suprising.

For what reason should anyone take the teacher at her word? She's become a center of media attention while the principal prefers to simply state that it's a personal matter. Which side has more to gain by lying here?

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

I believe he DID fire her.

Scroll up a bit. The teachers' union has no knowledge of anyone being fired.

[lurkernomore]

Originally Posted by Lute Skywatcher

According to New Brunswick Home News Tribune, Pillai-Diaz says even the union is supporting the board. Meanwhile, a union rep says nobody was fired. Sounds to me like the teacher is stirring shit.

Perhaps not. But she isn't in the union, as cited by O'Reilly, apparently in an onair interview.

http://www.command-post.org/oped/

That may make a difference, especially when teacher unions lean left:

As much as one-third of the tax-exempt National Education Association's yearly $271 million income goes toward politically related activities, according to union documents filed with the Internal Revenue Service.

.
.
.

Politically, the NEA leans heavily toward Democrats. A 2002 study by the Center for Responsive Politics found that since 1988 the NEA had given $21 million in campaign contributions, 95 percent of that to Democrats.

The union actively participated in the 1996 Clinton-Gore re-election effort. In 1995-96, NEA political division director Mary Elizabeth Teasley and manager John Pacheco in Washington served as NEA representatives on the Democratic National Committee's National Coordinated Campaign Steering Committee, known as "the national table."

That committee held regular meetings to devise strategy to help Democratic congressional campaigns and the Clinton-Gore re-election campaign, according to an April 17, 1998, letter from DNC general counsel Joseph E. Sandler to the Federal Election Commission, which at the time was investigating coordinated political activities between unions and party campaign committees.

Miss Teasley was then being paid $113,264 annually from NEA's general operating funds, and Mr. Pacheco was paid $96,375 annually.

http://www.childrenfirstamerica.org/...pr/0407032.htm

I don't know if she is just a troublemaker, or the administration made trouble. But the only supposed witness who is named said parents asked for Kerry's picture to be placed up with Bush. And as for the student email?

>Regarding the reasons behind why middle school teacher Shiba Pillai-Diaz was dismissed from the Crossroads Middle School. Every day the administration of my school faces the staggering logistics of preparing a total of 2100 students for a high school which recently moved up to the rank of 49th statewide.

If that's the way the kids in her middle school class typically write, there is no way they should fire her.

[Bear_Nenno]

I would not say it is unilluminated of facts. I would say it is all inclusive of the facts. No particular story would appeal to me more than any other. I have no agenda hear.
I have experience with the behavior of middle school students, and their (often insane) parents. I've known and worked under several principals. Some a strong, effective and admired leader; others a self-involved, blind-to-everthing prude.
I also have experience interviewing suspects and crime scene witnesses during my internships after the police academy.

The facts as I believe them incorporate all the stories and spin and put them together to create a logical truth. The teacher did make comments. The parents did approach her and ask her to put up a picture of Kerry. And the principal did "fire" her. My story attempts to answer the "why" to all of those facts.

[Bear_Nenno]

Originally Posted by Lute Skywatcher

Scroll up a bit. The teachers' union has no knowledge of anyone being fired.

That's because the principal CAN'T fire her. This does not mean she fully understood this fact. She is, after all, a new teacher. This also doesn't mean it was not his intent to make her take her stuff and leave. Either he forgot and over-stepped his authority (some principals do think they are all powerful), or he lost control in the heat of the argument and told her to grab her stuff and leave.
After calming down, or after realizing he has no authority to fire her, he has to work fast to fix the problem. So he calls a union guy and makes doubly extra sure that it's documented: He never said "fired".

[glee]

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

Most students in middle school are not mature or intelligent enough to have their own informed political views. Their views will be that of their parents. Unfortunately, if the parents are uneducated, uninformed, ignorant trash, then the children will have some crazy - and usually extremist - views.

Ah, you mean the fundamentalist Republicans?
Ban evolution - it's only a theory!

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

The best way to avoid confrontation with these particular students, is to make sure they don't know your political affiliation or you stance on certain topics. While Ms. Pillai-Diaz didn't help the situation by placing an elephant on the cabinet and pictures of her hero on the bulletin board, there was no possible way for her to hide her political affiliation.

Didn't 'help the situation', huh?
Perhaps she shouldn't have used a megaphone every morning as students arrived: "Vote Bush, or terrorists will overrun the country!"

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

Ms. Pillai-Diaz took time away from school to attend the Republican National Convention. All her students would have known where she was. Think back to when you had a sub, you always knew where your teacher was.

Of course. It's the sole topic of conversation amongst students. Why they even know where you live, what you did last summer and your deepest desires.

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

Based on what I've read, and my own experiences with middle schools students, I am inclined to think the following are facts.

Perhaps I can help you, because I'm a teacher (and a mind reader!). I'll pop my comments in brackets...

-Ms. Pillai-Diaz is an opinionated Republican
(yes indeed)

-Her students never liked her to begin with.
(sounds right)

-Her students know she likes Bush. They know she was at the Convention.
(if only she hadn't put up the picture. Or told them she was going to watch the only man who could keep America free)

-They ask her all the time about Bush. Why are you voting for him. My mom says she's a murderer. He uses the Army to kill babies. He's trying to make all black people slaves. . . yada y pues yada.
(ah, no. They actually asked if Bush had ducked military service. And what reason he had for invading Iraq. And why Rumsfeld had shaken hands with Saddam. And why so many jobs had been lost under Bush.)

-She does her best to tell the students to stay off the subject.
(at every opportunity, she peddles political propaganda)

-She even removes the elephant to try to prevent further uprising. Probably after a student commented on it and got loud and obnoxious.
(only after she realises that her political prejudices are showing, does she do something.)

-When the parents hear she won't let their students talk about politics in class, that she is violating and suppressing their freedom of speech. This makes them even madder than the few times she let slip some politically biased statements.
(when the parents hear she is totally biased, they worry about her professionalism. Meanwhile she continues to act like a fool)

-She does her best to not stir up political debate in class, but when one can only take so much. At one point a student says something like "If I could vote, I would vote for Kerry because he isn't trying to be Hitler". She tries to brush it off, but she mumbles, "Well, I'm glad you're not able to vote". The student hears that and makes a huge deal out of it. The student tells his parents who make an even bigger deal about it.
(she does her best to indoctrinate the students, but is pretty useless at it. At one point a student asks if there is anything to be said for the Democrats. She bellows "Those child murdering, godless, communists are all in league with terrorists! They want to make you all homosexuals and they tell lies about God, who created the World 6,000 years ago!"
Alarmed, a student mentions this to their parents)

-Weeks go by. She is still being pestered by some students. Eventually, a similar comment is made. Again, it is blown into something huge and complaints are made.
(Having failed to introduce School Prayer and the Ten Commandments into School, she spends all lesson foaming at the mouth about Hell)

-The parents are really starting to hate her.
(the parents are really concerned about their children's education)

-The parents (probably know each other), approach her at a parent's night event and start yelling at her. Yelling, not discussing. They get in her face and demand that she put a Kerry poster on the bulletin board. She declines, so they tell the principal.
(the parents approach her nervously at a parent's evening. She starts yelling abuse at them.)

-The Principal doesn't really know Ms. Diaz. She's a new teacher. All he knows is he's been getting some complaints from these three parents. He calls her in and an argument insues. In the heat of it all, he tells her to grab her stuff and leave.
(having witnessed her behaviour at parent's evening, the Principal calls her in. She walks out of the job before he can take any action.)

-Realizing that he doesn't have the authority to fire a teacher, the principal gets a union guy involved. He doesn't want to get in trouble for telling her to grab her stuff and leave. He needs to cover his ass and make sure the union knows he never tried to "fire" anyone. He's very lucky, and very happy that he never used the word "fired", so he makes sure to mention that. And he mentions it several times in front of the officer and the union guy to make it extra clear that he never used that specific term. That was a close one. He almost got in trouble for trying to fire a teacher.
(gosh, don't you know anything about US employment law? :wally )

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

So that's basically my view until I hear different.

Well now you know the truth!

[Lute Skywatcher]

Originally Posted by Bear_Nenno

This also doesn't mean it was not his intent to make her take her stuff and leave.

Do you know something the rest of us don't? All we have is her saying, "[W]hat does it mean then when your boss asks you to hand over the keys and kicks you out of the building?"

[MaxTheVool]

Originally Posted by Brutus

Good God, Kerryites are stupid.

Brutus, you are, without a doubt, the worst human being who posts on the SDMB. You should be ashamed of yourself. You are not fighting ignorance, you are inciting anger and division. I don't know what motivates you, but I strongly suggest that you take a long, hard, look at yourself in the mirror, and consider whether your actions on the SDMB make the world a better place or not. I hesitate to speculate about what moral code guides you, but if it includes anything comparable to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you", do you truly believe that you are living up to it?



(PS: it hardly seems worth responding to your putrescent little abortion of a snide remark, but I will do so anyhow, as hope springs eternal that at some point in your life, you will actually engage in a meaningful dialogue about something. If the situation was precisely as initially described, and three parents complained because Kerry's picture had not been added to an apolitical montage of presidents, then, yes, that would be an idiotic thing to complain about. IF. And you know what could be deduced from that? That those three parents were idiots. Expanding that to cover all Kerry supporters (and surely you can come up with a nice insulting name for them... maybe something involving carrion?) is unsupporetd, dishonest and vile. And the sad thing is, I'm pretty sure that at some level you know that, which is why I questioned your motives in posting in the first place.)

[SteveG1]

Originally Posted by malkavia

Every so often I encounter a Republican who makes me proud to be a registered Democrat.

<3 <3

Thank you, Brutus.

Ditto.

[Bear_Nenno]

glee,
All of your comments are equally as possible. Except this one:

(ah, no. They actually asked if Bush had ducked military service. And what reason he had for invading Iraq. And why Rumsfeld had shaken hands with Saddam. And why so many jobs had been lost under Bush.)

No way. I don't buy it for a second. If the students were that well informed, they wouldn't be pestering her. She could even invite them to debate these issues after class or something. I think the students' comments to her were both malicious and annoyingly without content. It's a lot more frustrating when someone says "Bush likes Hitler" than when someone says, "Bush should never have invaded Iraq".
I think the students did pester her. And I think it was the very nature and purpose of the pestering that drove her nuts. She probably could have handled questions about job loss.

I'm not trying to jump on her campaign or anything. I hope that, at least, that's clear. I am not on any side. I couldn't care less about the outcome of this situation. I'm not stuck to my opinion about how this all unfolded. I was just sharing a possibility. I don't know how anyone could really have a definite side with all the conflicting testimony.
I can't "debate" your comments, because that's just how the story feels to you. But it does seem to paint the teacher in an extremely evil light. Almost storybook.
My scenario spreads the blame across all parties involved. Which is actually closer to reality.

But I WILL stick by what I said about the principal. He absolutely had a chance to end this before it started. He could have done a better job of alleviating the probelm.